The present invention is drawn to the area of servicing ink-jet imaging pens. More specifically, the present invention is drawn to servicing ink-jet imaging pens such that two or more ink-jet pens containing ink-jet inks that are reactive with one another can share a common service station, or can utilize a common printhead.
Computer printer technology has evolved to a point where very high resolution images can be transferred to various types of media, including paper. One particular type of printing involves the placement of small drops of a fluid ink onto a media surface in response to a digital signal. Typically, the fluid ink is placed or jetted onto the surface without physical contact between the printing device and the surface.
There are several reasons that ink-jet printing has become a popular way of recording images on various media surfaces, particularly paper. Some of these reasons include low printer noise, capability of high-speed recording, and multi-color recording. Additionally, these advantages can be obtained at a relatively low price to consumers. However, though there has been great improvement in ink-jet printing, accompanying this improvement are increased demands by consumers in this area, e.g., higher speeds, higher resolution, full color image formation, increased stability, etc.
In general, ink-jet inks are either dye- or pigment-based inks. Both are typically prepared in a liquid vehicle that contains the dye and/or the pigment. Dye-based ink-jet inks generally use a liquid colorant that is usually water-based to turn the media a specific color. Conversely, pigmented inks typically use a solid or dispersed colorant to achieve color.
Many properties that are desirable for ink-jet printing include good edge acuity and optical density of an image on a media substrate, good dry time of the ink on the substrate, adhesion to the substrate, lack of deviation of ink droplets when fired, presence of all dots, resistance of the ink after drying to water and other solvents, long-term storage stability, good dot size and dot gain, color-to-color bleed alleviation, acceptable coalescence, long term reliability without corrosion or nozzle clogging, good light fastness, good wet fastness, low humid hue shift, and other known properties. Many inks are known to possess some of the above described properties. However, few inks are known that possess all of these properties, since an improvement in one property often results in the degradation in another property. Accordingly, investigations continue into developing ink formulations that have improved properties and that do not improve one property at the significant detriment of another. However, many challenges still remain to further improve the image quality of ink-jet prints without sacrificing pen performance and reliability.
To illustrate advancement in the art that has evolved, there has been great interest in the area of reactive inks. These inks are designed such that a reaction occurs between two different ink colors at a border between the colors, e.g., an interaction such as precipitation occurs. This interaction can improve the edge acuity and/or color to color bleed between inks. For example, in order to have good black to color bleed and halo control, many ink-jet ink sets have been designed so that contact between the black and color inks promote destabilization of the black color causing it to agglomerate on the page. This can be accomplished by adding materials to the color inks that cause xe2x80x9ccrashingxe2x80x9d of the black, usually acids or multivalent metal salts. Because of this reactivity, it has not been practical to put a reactive black and a multivalent salt- or acid-containing color ink set on the same printhead since agglomeration of the colorant may lead to clogging of the nozzles when the inks inevitably cross-contaminate. Because of this limitation, printhead configurations of reactive inks have often been limited to variations where reactive inks do not share a common printhead, e.g., three color pen and black pen are separate, or where each color has its own printhead.
In the prior art, care has been taken to avoid cross-contamination of printheads containing inks designed to be reactive with one another. One solution used to avoid cross-contamination, as mentioned, has been to provide separate service stations for inks intended to be reactive with one another. However, this is not always the most convenient arrangement. As alluded to, inkjet printers generally have one or more printhead service station(s) to which an ink-jet printhead is moved by a carriage. A cap that contacts or covers the printhead is also generally located at the service station. Further, at the service station, the printhead (or multiple heads if such are used) are occasionally cleaned and, if necessary, primed with ink. For use in this cleaning function, wipers can be present and located at the service station. The service station can also include a xe2x80x9csledxe2x80x9d carrying these elements and others required to service the one or more printheads of the printer. This sled itself can be moved transversely to an axis of motion of the printhead carriage, for example in a vertical direction, so as to bring the caps or wipers into or out of contact with the printhead. Alternatively, a tumbler can be provided at the service station, and wipers, as well as caps, can be located on the tumbler. Rotation (and in some cases also vertical movement) of the tumbler effects wiping of the printhead, and/or alignment of one or more caps with one or more printheads positioned adjacent the tumbler at the service station. Though wiper and solvent systems are described in the prior art, the problems associated with cross-contamination of two reactive inks using a common service station or printhead has not been fully addressed.
It has been recognized that the use of certain components in ink-jet pen cleaning systems can provide acceptable printhead cleaning properties, even when two reactive inks are provided in multiple ink-jet pens sharing a common service station, a common printhead, or are in close proximity, thereby contributing to cross-contamination. Specifically, a method of printing two ink-jet inks reactive with one another from a printer having a common printhead while maintaining pen reliability can comprise the steps of jetting a first ink-jet ink from a common printhead and jetting a second ink-jet ink from the common printhead. The contacting of the inks from the common printhead results in the crashing of at least one of the inks thereby forming a crashed ink. The method further comprises dispensing a reactive cleaning fluid onto the printhead before or after crashing occurs, wherein the reactive cleaning fluid is chemically configured to react with the crashed ink, thereby minimizing or reverse crashing at the printhead.
In a further detailed aspect, a method of minimizing or reversing crashing of a first ink-jet ink that has reacted with a second ink-jet ink on a printhead can comprise the steps of (a) dispensing a reactive cleaning fluid that is chemically configured to react with the first ink-jet ink after crashing; and (b) cleaning a printhead having a crashed ink-jet ink thereon with the reactive cleaning fluid, thereby minimizing or reverse crashing at the printhead.
With respect to a related system, an ink-jet printing system can comprise a first ink-jet ink and a second ink-jet ink that is reactive with the first ink-jet ink such that when the first ink-jet ink contacts the second ink-jet ink, crashing of one of the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink occurs. The system can further comprise printing architecture configured for jetting the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink onto a substrate, wherein cross-contamination between the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink can occur on a printhead. A reactive cleaning fluid formulated to minimize or reverse crashing that occurs on the at least one printhead upon contact between the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink can also be present, such as can be present in a dispenser apparatus for holding a reservoir of reactive cleaning fluid and for dispensing the reactive cleaning fluid onto the printhead.
With respect to both the methods and systems, the reactive cleaning fluid can be any fluid that is formulated to minimize or reverse crashing. For example, the reactive cleaning fluid can be a basic liquid material if one of the ink-jet links is crashed by a second acidic ink. In one embodiment, such a basic material can comprise a composition such as sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, or lithium hydroxide. In another embodiment, the reactive cleaning fluid can be a pH buffer that buffers at about pH 8 or higher. Alternatively, the reactive cleaning fluid can comprise a chelating agent such as, for example, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). Though a basic liquid- or chelating agent-containing material can be used, the invention does not solely rest with these examples. Any chemical compound that can be used to minimize or reverse chemical crashing of one or more ink-jet ink is considered within the scope of the present invention. In other words, the invention is drawn to, in part, the chemical matching of the reactive cleaning fluid to the chemical properties of a crashed ink-jet ink that occurs after cross-contamination at a printhead.
Before the present invention is disclosed and described, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular process steps and materials disclosed herein because such process steps and materials may vary somewhat. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is used for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only. The terms are not intended to be limiting because the scope of the present invention is intended to be limited only by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.
It must be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms xe2x80x9ca,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9can,xe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cthexe2x80x9d include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.
As used herein, xe2x80x9ceffective amountxe2x80x9d refers to the minimal amount of a substance or agent, which is sufficient to achieve a desired effect. For example, an effective amount of a xe2x80x9cliquid vehiclexe2x80x9d is the minimum amount required for use in a composition such as an ink-jet ink, while maintaining properties in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
xe2x80x9cCrashingxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9ccrashedxe2x80x9d refers to the effect of one ink-jet ink on another ink-jet ink, wherein a chemical change occurs causing agglomeration, precipitation, or other reaction mechanism. This is desired in some ink-jet ink printing systems to reduce bleed and halo of a printed image. However, if crashing occurs at an ink-jet printhead, reliability problems such as clogging, misdirected ink, and the like can occur. In some systems, reactive inks can be crashed by multivalent salts, e.g., containing multivalent metal ions, as can be present in multivalent salt-containing ink-jet inks. In other systems, reactive inks can be crashed by an acid, as can be present in an acidic ink-jet ink.
xe2x80x9cReactive cleaning solutionxe2x80x9d refers to a liquid composition as a solution, dispersion, or in its neat form, that chemically reacts with crashed ink-jet inks to minimize or even reverse the effects of crashing.
It has been recognized that systems and methods for servicing ink-jet pens on an ink-jet printer where at least two ink-jet inks reactive with one another are present on the same printhead and/or share a common service station can be arranged. Typically, ink-jet printers contain cyan, magenta, yellow, and optionally, black ink-jet inks. Other numbers of ink-jet inks in a common printer are also occasionally used. For example, six ink systems are reasonably common and include black ink, yellow ink, two cyan inks, and two magenta inks. With many of these systems, it is desirable to share a common printhead and/or a common service station. However, if two inks sharing a common printhead and/or common service station are reactive with one another, clogging or other undesirable occurrences at the printhead can occur more readily. For example, some ink-jet printers utilize cyan, magenta, and yellow dye-based ink-jet inks that are designed to react with pigment-based black ink-jet inks such that precipitation occurs at contact, thereby reducing black to color bleed, halo, and other undesirable attributes. Trying to utilize these reactive inks on the same printhead causes clogged nozzles when the black and color inks cross-contaminate. By using fluids that are specifically selected to react with the cross-contaminated printheads, or to prevent reaction upon cross-contamination, better reliability can be achieved from pens sharing a printhead and/or service station.
Specifically, pH buffer-containing compositions, chemically basic compositions and/or chelating agent-containing compositions can be used to minimize and or reverse printhead cross-contamination before or after its occurrence. They can be applied as a fluid, or in their neat form, as long as the viscosity and volatility of the fluids are within a practical range for extended use. The process of treating a printhead before cross-contamination as a preventative measure, or after cross-contamination as a reversing measure, can be accomplished by aspirating, wiping, or by other known cleaning methods.
In one example, in the case where acidic color inks are used to xe2x80x9ccrashxe2x80x9d a black ink, a pH buffer or basic liquid material or solution, such as for use with a wiper fluid, can be used. In the case where a black ink-jet ink is crashed by a multivalent ion-containing color ink, a liquid material or solution containing a chelating agent, such as for use with a wiper fluid, can be used. By one of these exemplary embodiments, it is possible to print reactive inks from the same printhead, or from separate printheads that share a common service station. The pH buffer or basic material, or chelating agent used in the fluid assisted cleaning, e.g., wiping, can help keep the nozzles healthy by periodically neutralizing the acidic environment on the printhead or by sequestering the multivalent cations, respectively. This averts the buildup of precipitates either by preventing agglomeration or precipitation, or by reversing agglomerate or precipitate formation.
With this in mind, a method of printing two ink-jet inks reactive with one another from a printer having a common printhead while maintaining pen reliability can comprise the steps of (a) jetting a first ink-jet ink from a common printhead; (b) jetting a second ink-jet ink from the common printhead, wherein the second ink-jet ink is reactive with the first ink-jet ink such that when the first ink-jet ink contacts the second ink-jet ink at the printhead, crashing of at least one of the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink occurs forming a crashed ink; and (c) dispensing reactive cleaning fluid onto the printhead before or after crashing occurs, wherein the reactive cleaning fluid is chemically configured to react with the crashed ink, thereby minimizing or reverse crashing at the printhead.
In one embodiment, the first ink-jet ink can be crashed by the second ink-jet ink, and the second ink-jet ink can be acidic. In such an embodiment, the reactive cleaning fluid can be a basic liquid material or buffer, such as sodium hydroxide solution, potassium hydroxide solution, lithium hydroxide solution, tris base solution (trimethylol amino methane) (can buffer at about pH 8), boric acid/sodium hydroxide solution (can buffer at about pH 8), glycine/sodium hydroxide solution (can buffer at about pH 8), N-tris(hydroxymethyl)methylglycine (can buffer at about pH 8), triethanolamine, for example. Alternatively, the first ink-jet ink can be crashed by the second ink-jet ink wherein the second ink-jet ink contains a multivalent salt. In this embodiment, the reactive cleaning fluid can comprise a chelating agent, such as ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), ethylenediaminebis (2-hydroxyphenylacetic acid) (EDDHA), porphine, and lauroyl-modified EDTA (Hampshire LED3A Na, from Hampshire: Lexington, Mass.; a Division of the Dow Chemical Company), for example.
In an alternative embodiment, a method of minimizing or reversing crashing of a first ink-jet ink that has reacted with a second ink-jet ink on a printhead can comprise the steps of dispensing a reactive cleaning fluid that is chemically configured to react with the first ink-jet ink after crashing; and cleaning a printhead having a crashed ink-jet ink thereon with the reactive cleaning fluid, thereby minimizing or reverse crashing at the printhead. Again, if the crashing occurs by the presence of a multivalent salt, a chelating agent as describe above can be used. If the crashing occurs by the presence of an acid, a basic material can be used as describe previously.
In one embodiment, the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink can be jetted from a common printhead. Cross-contamination is likely with such a configuration. As a result, cleaning with a reactive cleaning fluid may be desired. However, cross-contamination can occur with other arrangements as well. For example, two separate printheads can cross-contaminate, such as when two printheads share a common service station, wiper blade, or the like. Likewise, if two printheads are too close in proximity, cross-contamination can occur by way of aerosol contamination, i.e., stray aerosol spray cross-contamination. If a common wiper is used for multiple printheads, cross-contamination can be remediated by way of the use of the reactive cleaning composition. Though the cleaning is preferably carried out by wiping at the service station, other cleaning techniques can be used as would be apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the present disclosure, e.g., aspirating.
In another embodiment, an ink-jet printing system can comprise a first ink-jet ink and a second ink-jet ink that is reactive with the first ink-jet ink such that when the first ink-jet ink contacts the second ink-jet ink, crashing of one of the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink occurs. Further, printing architecture can be present that is configured for jetting the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink onto a substrate, wherein cross-contamination between the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink can occur on at least one printhead. To prevent or reverse such crashing, a reactive cleaning fluid formulated to minimize or reverse crashing that occurs on the at least one printhead upon contact between the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink can be present. Such a composition can be dispensed by a dispenser apparatus for holding a reservoir of reactive cleaning fluid, and for dispensing the reactive cleaning fluid onto the at least one printhead.
Like the previous embodiment, the first ink-jet ink can be crashed by the second ink-jet ink that is acidic. In this embodiment, the reactive cleaning fluid can be a basic liquid material or buffer, e.g., sodium hydroxide solution, potassium hydroxide solution, lithium hydroxide solution, tris base solution (trimethylol amino methane), boric acid/sodium hydroxide solution, glycine/sodium hydroxide solution, N-tris(hydroxymethyl)methylglycine, triethanolamine, and the like. Alternatively, the first ink-jet ink can be crashed by the second ink-jet ink wherein the second ink-jet ink contains a multivalent salt. There, the reactive cleaning fluid can comprise a chelating agent, e.g., EDTA, ethylenediaminebis (2-hydroxyphenylacetic acid) (EDDHA), porphine, and lauroyl-modified EDTA (Hampshire LED3A Na, from Hampshire: Lexington, Mass.; a Division of the Dow Chemical Company), and the like.
There are various ways that two ink-jet inks that are reactive with one another can become cross-contaminated on printing architecture. For example, the printing architecture comprises a common printhead for printing both the first ink-jet ink and the second ink-jet ink. A common printhead would have jetting orifices in close proximity such that any excess ink may come in contact at or near a pen orifice. Alternatively, if the printing architecture comprises a first printhead and a second printhead, if they are in close enough proximity, or share a service station, the one or more printhead can be cross-contaminated due to service station contamination or aerosol spray contamination. A service station component that could transfer reactive inks to undesired locations can include a service station wiper. In one embodiment, if a common wiper has reactive cleaning solution thereon, a common wiper could be used without significant adverse affects.
Though the embodiments described herein are put forth with respect to two ink-jet inks that are reactive, other configurations are also possible. For example, a three-, four-, five-, or six-pen (or more) configuration could benefit from the methods and systems of the present invention. For example, a four-pen system comprising acidic cyan, acidic magenta, and acidic yellow can be used with a reactive black ink-jet ink, such that the black ink-jet ink becomes crashed upon contact. In accordance with principles of the present invention, one or more of the color ink-jet inks could share a printhead with the black ink-jet ink without adverse clogging, as the reactive cleaning solution would be able to minimize or reverse agglomeration or crashing using a cleaning mechanism such as wiping. Alternatively, if separate printheads are used for each ink-jet ink, a single wiper could be used to clean all printheads due to the presence of the reactive cleaning solution, as cross-contamination would not create reliability problems due to cleaning solution being specifically formulated to minimize and reverse the adverse affects of cross-contamination crashing. The same would be true of other ink-jet ink arrangements, such as with six-pen ink sets and other ink sets known in the art.